User talk:Musui
__TOC__ Anything that you post here will cause an alert message to appear on my screen the next time I log in, or refresh/visit a wiki page. It's a good way to contact me if you would like me to be aware of something the next time I sit down to edit the wiki. Cheers, James. =Things for James to do= Please add anything you'd like me to do here, such as reply to thread X. Short Term * Update the covenant finances once the game has moved to Spring 1222 properly. * Update build points on Covenant Sheet. * Update the reputations for all player characters. * Update the Hooks and Boons for the layers of the Mynd. * Make sure Covenant Map gets done. * Finish creating The Area page. * Reap that which has been sown. Long Term Things to do when there is nothing else to do ;* Improve the guide for newcomers to wiki-based roleplaying. =Unread= Under Discussion Research for Phaedrus Did you agree to the Spell description for Phaedrus research during spring 1222 or should I look for something else for him to do? --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 22:56, 6 June 2007 (UTC) You can research the spell, and the research would count toward your preparation for the magical device (automatic quill) that you are working to invent, but I think the effect of the spell in ordinary conditions is to eliminate penalties from an unstable or uneven surface, neither of which are conditions that are extant in the scriptorium, but probably useful while travelling, especially at sea. The scribe will still need to employ a knife in their other hand. They only needs to move and weight down a page a few times a day, so the time saving there is also negligible. --James 11:05, 9 June 2007 (UTC) OK, I'll redesign that one later. Will this one work; The wellbehaved ink ? --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 12:43, 9 July 2007 (UTC) : By the way, the "independent quill" in not supposed to be a magical device. Phaedrus's XP? I think you might have exchanged Phaedrus experience a little, According to the pulse notes Phaedrus reads Rego in Winter 1221, Animal in Spring, Writes tractatii in Summer, and reads Rego in Autumn. For the spellcasting in the Trading story I have assumed that Phaedrus has had the chance to read the Rego summa for a short while (>4/23's of a season)... --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 23:26, 20 April 2007 (UTC) Well, he is limited to one source of experience per season, so if he wishes to surrender the experience from the trading story for experience from reading a fraction of a book, then that is fine by me. --James 10:49, 9 June 2007 (UTC) The reason for assuming anything about the lenght of his study of the Rego summa was that he needed those 4 xp to get to Rego 14, which was needed for the spell he finally did not cast. According to the Chronicles he spends the autumn season reading the summa for 15(23wAffinity) XP. Thus the adventure experience is wasted, unless he can get them instead of the exposure experience of Winter, I'd hate to have a game mechanic that made "Oops, I had an adventure, I'd better research a spell for this season rather than keep studying." into something a character (e.g. any Magi) that focuses on learning should do. It would not even be "out of character" for most of them since, after spending 15 years in on learning, they should know how they learn best. --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 13:25, 9 July 2007 (UTC) Experience for Characters When looking at experience for non-magus characters a lot of them seems to get less than the 10 a character with the "poor" flaw would get. For some like Alicia that is reasonable since we are working her too much but for the characters we are not ower working (or playing at all) I think the default actions should take them to the 10, 15 or 20 exp their riches should provide. --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 23:58, 20 April 2007 (UTC) :For the minor characters, I only really assign them experience when people demand it specifically, otherwise they fall under the catch-all 2xp exposure. I'm not very interested in keeping close tabs on the grogs. It is worth keeping an eye on the blacksmith, for instance, as his skill level actually affects your lab score, but the cook is perfectly adequate as she is. When the cook dies, I'll take a look at her replacements, and at that point you might see them get some back-dated experience as their actual ability level is now something we need to know. In the meantime, grogs are more about "bums on seats" than "bottoms perched skillfully upon seats". Specialists I care about, the turb far less so. --James 16:54, 22 April 2007 (UTC) Could you just give them the basic 15 XP per year then and let whoever is interested assign them? (If the Covenant is "the single most important Character" making it into something living should be of some interest.)--SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 13:25, 9 July 2007 (UTC) =Read= A wolf in the library! James: Not sure where to tell you this... I am currently without internet access. I am using the library computer to post this. hopefully will be back online in 2-4 weeks. Sorry, for sudden disappearing act. --Steelwolf 00:50, 15 June 2007 (UTC) Not to worry, your story will be waiting here for you when you return. Thanks for letting me know. --James 02:15, 15 June 2007 (UTC) Phaedrus researching non-fatiguing sponts Phaedrus does a lot of his spellcasting in non-fatiguing sponts. I would like to start a research project to get divide by 4(or 3) non-fatiguing (and no die-roll) sponts, some time in the future. What do you think? --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 09:33, 7 June 2007 (UTC) I think it is doable, but the number of seasons it would take are probably too many for you to both complete the project and get to use it. It would be a kind of hermetic breakthrough, which is fine, but they do take a long time. --James 10:49, 9 June 2007 (UTC) A Sprinkle of Latin Come to think of: Phaedrus thinks reading is a blessing for intelligent beings, and since (as I learnt when discussing Alicia's Artes Liberales classes ;-) reading is only done in Latin, he makes a point of sprinkling his language with simple latin words and phrases with any pages, and anyone else that seems interested, when time permits the possible confusion. He is a "good teacher" so he should know how to do it in a useful way, so people can pick up things if they want to spend the effort (i.e. use one of their XP for the season on it). --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 09:33, 7 June 2007 (UTC) Language acquisition requires that you are first taught a thing, and then practice the thing. Failing to use something causes you to forget it. So while incidental word-play may permit someone to temporarily pick up a word, unless they repeatedly use the word, they will forget it again. : Using the language means talking to Phaedrus (and probably Marcus) from time to time and being interested (as in spend experience on it). I would guess there won't be too many (if any) taking the chance, but it's there and it seemed like something Phaedrus would do. (He's generous and rather obsessed about books and reading.) --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 10:44, 9 July 2007 (UTC) The magi all speak latin on a fairly constant basis. The scribes all use latin frequently. The nobles, and officers (e.g. Chamberlain) also have recourse to using latin for official papers, etc. So the only people with no meaningful latin practice are the grogs, who on the big ladder of important things are ranked somewhere around the level of firewood. They are already trying to deal with orders in Welsh, English, French, and the occasional bit of Italian, so I don't think it would work with them. --James 10:49, 9 June 2007 (UTC) : I was thinking more about the pages and servants, as you say the turb probably has enough work cut out for them anyway. Besides, Phaedrus doesn't meet with the turb that much. --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 10:44, 9 July 2007 (UTC) Alicia and her Learn from Mistakes virtue As a not-so-idle question, what was the decision on "learn from mistakes" experience? Only during adventures? Alicai has Learn Shapechange from Mistakes .... JBforMarcus 16:23, 28 March 2007 (UTC) :Hmm, a tricky question. For a primary tabletop character, such a skill roll failure would not occur very often. To both fail, and fail by just one point in order to gain the experience seems overly mean, though it does net you 5xp. I suggest we just assign her ten XP for now, and think about it in more detail next year. --James 10:51, 31 March 2007 (UTC) Phaedrus's personal servant Is there any promising (young) individual availible to apprentice to Bartleby, or that would take up the duties as Phaedrus personal servant? --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 22:37, 19 March 2007 (UTC) What skills do you require of your servant? : I don't know really, some kind of "Magic"-related virtue or flaw so (s)he won't be warped by the aura. : I think that for the time being some random kids to act as messangers and do some menial tasks would be all he needs. : A full time servant would be someone smart enough to be company and help avoid trouble during especially tricky lab work and with some other occupation to spend time on when not needed in the lab. : --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 23:42, 20 April 2007 (UTC) I don't know who is in Alicia's class or how skilled they have become in Artes Liberales and Latin, so I can't really answer your question. A safe bet is to recruit someone from Sarop who is already an apprentice Scribe. Who is in Alicia's class? The number determines the amount of experience recieved. --James 17:23, 21 March 2007 (UTC) ::Okay, remind me about this during the next adventure Phaedrus goes upon and we can have him find someone. I'm thinking +2 Intelligence, Supernatural(Magical) Virtue, and be fairly young. --James 16:54, 22 April 2007 (UTC) ::: Sounds good. With "for the time being" above I was reffering to how I wanted things to work right now (as of winter 1222), think pages assigned by Isac. --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 22:56, 6 June 2007 (UTC) Driving carts and scrubbing floors When I asked about the unnamed servants and teamsters you said we should keep our hands of them since they were neccessary for the Covenant economy, but would it not be easier to recruit an other random servant or teamster and develop any needed skill one of the unnamed ones might have than to look abroad for the same skill set? --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 23:58, 20 April 2007 (UTC) All teamsters have Profession:Teamster, and all servants have Profession:Servant. If we need more teamsters, we can simply recruit them, and the same goes for servants. Of course, once the covenfolk start forming families less external recruitment will be needed. I don't keep track of their skills - all teamsters are assumed to be adequate at driving carts and carrying things, and all servants are good at serving, cleaning, etcetera as befits their professions. We do have a few servants with character sheets, because they occasionally feature in stories - but we don't really need any more prominent servants. --James 16:54, 22 April 2007 (UTC) Whoops! Did you realy intend to take away all experience awards for autumn 1221? --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 11:38, 26 March 2007 (UTC) Of course! As I never, ever, make any mistakes of any kind, this was evidently a 'deliberate mistake' just to test whether or not you were all paying attention... *peers up nervously at Sam over a towering stack of game notes, before tip-toeing away to hide behind the sofa again...* :D --James 16:19, 26 March 2007 (UTC) Using Rego Terram to Teleport Metal Objects Does the following meet the requirements necessary to teleport an innanimate metal object from one location to another? Rego Terram - Control or move dirt in a very unnatural fashion - Level 3 Affect Metal: +4 (15) Range: Personal: +0 (15) Duration: Momentary +0 (15) Target: Individual +0 (15) Is this going to be an enchanted device? Otherwise the "Personal" range seems troublesome... In ReCo how far you want to teleport also affects the magnitude. --SamuelUser talk:Samuel_ArsMagica 08:24, 18 March 2007 (UTC) Sam, sorry I missed your question here. The idea is to create an arrow that returns to the quiver or to the bow, after each shot. --Tim 17:24, 21 March 2007 (UTC) :The guideline for ReCo is that teleporting 500 paces is a level 20 effect, and teleporting one league is a level 25 effect. Given this (from Wikipedia): :"The range of the medieval weapon is unknown, with estimates from 165 to 228 m (180 to 249 yds). Modern longbows have a useful range up to 180 m (200 yd). A 150 lb Mary Rose replica longbow was able to shoot a 53.6 g (1.89 oz) arrow 328.0 m (360 yd) and a 95.9 g (3.3 oz) a distance of 249.9 m (272 yd)." :500 yards should be enough range. I suppose I should be grateful that you haven't asked for it to momentarily Muto into a food blender and spin at high speed once impaled in someone. So according to the book, teleporting the arrow is level 20, with a +4 modifier for affecting metal. The spell level could be reduced by making the arrow from stone or glass and enchanting it so that it doesn't shatter, glass being superior to stone. :Level 40 does seem a bit high for this spell though. --James 09:57, 18 March 2007 (UTC) :: Well, for a start, there is a big difference between 'teleporting' and 'flying'. Try looking at Crystal Dart (Cr/ReTe) or Unseen Arm for guidelines, (if you want to bring the level down). Also, given that it seem high, I'd do a comparison of other Te vs Co effects. A live human is a pretty complex thing, so although it might still be the Corpus 'base' material, it could be that it already counts as something a bit more complex like Metal vs dirt. --Corbonjnl 02:05, 19 March 2007 (UTC) ::: Having the arrow wrench itself back out of the wound as it flew back to the archer would definitely increase the damage inflicted, but would require the spell to be assigned a strength attribute and there would be a risk of the arrow getting stuck in certain situations (such as missing and impaling a saddle, or getting caught on chain mail) though if the arrow was currently impaled in someone while it was yanking and jerking around then that would be rather gruesome. --James 04:36, 19 March 2007 (UTC) I'm really just exploring this as a base enchantment. Let us say that the final item is a steel arrow that, once it strikes a target, acts as a lightning rod and summons a bolt of lightning for extra damage. After being struck, it teleports back to either the archer's quiver or back to the bow itself. Since it is teleporting and not flying, it does not require any brute force to tear out of the would or unhook from chainmail.--Tim 17:53, 21 March 2007 (UTC) MediaWiki Tabs I really like the way these look. I have altered my character sheets to use them, as I was never massively happy with my temporary link connection at the bottom of the pages. There is one small thing though... Using the template seems to remove not only the menu for quick navigation of longer pages, but also the ability to edit sections rather than the whole page. While this is not especially important on shorter pages, on longer ones it could rather hamper things. Is this intrinsic or can it be fixed? Anyway, nice work. Easy to use and aids simple navigation. --Perikles 17:15, 14 March 2007 (UTC) I have removed __NOEDITSECTION__ from mediawiki:Tabs-top. It looks okay now. Thanks for the feedback, --James 23:22, 14 March 2007 (UTC) Apprentice snatching in 'OUR' OOH So, James, how bad is it? I mean, how much did we all fail OOH lore rolls by? --Corbonjnl 01:35, 14 March 2007 (UTC) I have replied to the Apprentice Snatching discussion on the Tri-Covenant trip Talk Page which this refers to.--James 04:06, 14 March 2007 (UTC) Good work Really impressive work on the site css, it's so individual and very attractive. Good stuff! -- Sannse 08:42, 8 March 2007 (UTC) (Wikia community team) Thanks! :D --James 04:06, 14 March 2007 (UTC) Need some die rolls for Marcus Marcus is experimenting on a spell, see Marcus Grimoire, and needs the experimentation results. JBforMarcus 13:27, 6 March 2007 (UTC) Sadly, Marcus's research failed with no bad results. Details in the Grimoire.--James 04:06, 14 March 2007 (UTC) Book Specifics I need specifics on the two books that Marco brought with him as well as the text of the letter from House Harco, please. I can't take action in Winter 1222 without it. Thanks --Tim 12:30, 5 March 2007 (UTC) :You may also want to detail the specifics of whatever texts, or partial texts that Gruffydd turns over to Ambrosius. For example, presumably the Chaldean stuff is a text on Chaldean (dead language, no?) with a low level and/or quality. And what's an octavo? Anyway, all for Ambrosius' personal library till he decides otherwise. --Perikles 15:00, 5 March 2007 (UTC) ::Folio and Octavo are sizes of codex. Folio is 'sheet sized' whereas 8 Octavo pages can be cut from a folio sized page. That's a rough, ready, and inaccurate description, but you get the gist. :D ::: Addendum, Folio is a name given to a specific type of text in True Lineages. As such I'll be referring to actual folios as "books with really big pages" from now on. :D --James 04:06, 14 March 2007 (UTC) ::The chant in Chaldean... Due to the way it is laid out on the scroll, Marcus is able to tell with cursory inspection that it is in a dead language that none of you, I believe, actually read or write. However, the notes surrounding the chant allow you to infer that it is a Christian or Judaic chant praising god. Many of the notes seem to relate to cadence and pronunciation rather than meaning, so it is clear that they were written by someone fairly fluent in Chaldean, and for their own personal use as many of the notes are abbreviated, fairly cryptic, and spare little ink on explanation. ::I could assign it a level and quality for scraping together some initial knowledge of Chaldean, but it would count as a tractatus, but the amount of experience obtainable is very much dependant on your pre-existing ability in Chaldean - this is not an easy text. ::I will get around to the books shortly. Lots of priorities, so within 48 hours. --James 15:23, 5 March 2007 (UTC) :::Done. --James 04:06, 14 March 2007 (UTC) Arcane Connection Library Marcus is building a small collection of durable arcane connections to facilitate his use of Leap of Homecoming. He should be able to get ones for his cell and his sanctum petty easily, and by switching them out every season keep them "fresh." He also would like to find good hidden spots near places he travels to a lot to get an AC. Ideally he would like hidden places that are nearish to his destination - an obscured clearing near Church Stretton, for instance, and so on. JBforMarcus 17:03, 1 March 2007 (UTC) Hidden spots get increasingly more difficult the closer they are to the target. Cathedrals have no end of crooks and crannies - elevated galleries, hidden stairs, etcetera, but your average village doesn't have many walls, etc. You describe it as a library. Will the other magi be given access to these connections? Will it be a communal resource? Could a season of service entail fixing certain connections? It might be worth knocking up a page, and detailing the location linked to. How private and concealed each arrival point would be determined entirely by the description of where it is. What do you think? You could also send out grogs to fetch connections, and get one of the magi to intellego them before trying them out. Places such as Sarop might be useful. --James 03:02, 2 March 2007 (UTC) Re: distance. "Nearish" is a relative term. Getting within a mile or so of a village is great. The idea is just to be able to bop back and forth without spending a huge amount of time on travel. Re: communal resource. It hadn't occurred to me that others would be interested. If they are, something could certainly be worked out I would think -- although Marcus would not be inclined to give folks the AC to his sanctum or cell:-) Essentially I was envisioning, Marcus with Leap of Homecoming already in his Grimoire, developing a transport network for himself. If other folks learn the spell and/or have use for fixed ACs to various locales, then it could be service I think. I could put a page up if you think that would be a good idea. JBforMarcus 17:23, 2 March 2007 (UTC) :I did it's here Arcane Connection Library